Chewing gum base



Patented Nov. 15, '1932 UNITEDY STATES PATENT ori-ice GEORGE A.HATHERELL, 0F BURIBANK, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR T0 FRANK A.' G'AR'BU'.l".l,

OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA CHEWIN G GUM BASE application meamvenber 24,1930. semi N..49.7,77o.

VMy invention relates to chewing gum and an object of the invention isto produce a novel composition of matter from which, and a novel processby which, a superior chewing gum may be produced.

Large quantities of chewing gum are now produced by the blending ofnatural gums to which sugar and -other iavoring matter, such asflavoring oils, are added. The natural gums derived from the sap oftrees are commonly called latex gums which include chicle, jelutong,gutta kay, gutta hang kang, and several other products, includingrubber.

While the term gum is somewhat loosely applied in the arts, I use theword herein to denote a vegetable gum of the latex type, or a syntheticor compounded substance having equivalent properties.

The latex gums, being of vegetable origin, may contain variousimpurities which deleteriously affect the physical characteristics,

taste, or keepingrqualities of the chewing gum in which they are used.

It is an object of my invention to com-- pound a gum from substanceswhich do not contain such impurities and which istherefore superior tothe ordinary chewing gums as now sold.

It is a further ob'ect of my invent-ion to compound a gum o substanceswhose roportions can be so controlled as to pr uce a gum of uniform anddesirable characteristics.

I have found that rubber forms an excellent and preferred ingredient ofchewing gum made by my process. Rubber, as ordinarily'prodnoed, isderived from the sap of plants in various degrees of purity. While thecrepe rubber of commerce is the form ordinarily used by me, sprayedrubber is equally adaptable, as are also other rubbers as naturally orartificially produced. Rubber has the great advantages of beingavailable, low in price, and obtainable in a high degree of urity.

I am aware tIxat it has been pro to use rubber as an ingredient ofchewing gum, but with rather poor success. It is an ob ect -of myinvention to so compound the rub r lwith Cother substances. as teAproduce a chew- 100 C.' and preferably at 60 ing gum which is superiorto and cheaper in lcost of manufacture than the so-called chicle gumsnow on the market.

In the production of chewing gum by my process I combine the rubber witha suitable resin.

A' resin to be suitable for my purposes must have the followingproperties:

(a) It must be a solvent for or soluble in rubber. n 4 (b) It must beinsoluble in 'alkalinesolutions of mild strength and therefore tastelessand harmless when taken into the mouth.

(o) It must have no disagreeable odor.

(d) It must be stable and not tend to produce objectionabledecomposition products.

(e) It must be moderatelyC plastic at Some of the natural resins mayhave these properties but prefer to use one of the synthetic resinshaving the above-defined properties. Synthetic resins (known as cumaroneresins), Iare now produced by the polymerizai I believe to be partly dueto the fact that synthetic resins of hi h melting point have always beenused in cIiewing gum manufacture. Such resins are hard substances whichcan not be used in anyfconsiderable proportion if we are to produce asuiiicientlyplastic chewingI gum. I any attempt is made to use the lowmelting point synthetic resins of commerce in the manufacture .ofchewing gum,

these low melting point resins impart a ve disagreeable taste tostheThis I believe is due to the presence'in the low meltln point resins nowcommercially available, o certain substances which are removed intheprocess now used in producmg the high meltmg point l tionablesubstances)if they are subjected to high temperature under a vacuum. It may 4bepossible that synthetic resins suitable for my purpose are nowcommerciall available but I have never been able to o tain commerciallya synthetic resin of the properties defined above, nor do I believe thatsuch a resin has ever been used inthe manufacture of chewing gum.

Although a mixture of suitable synthetic resin compounded with rubberdoes not in itself constitute a high grade chewing gum,

I have found that when such a base 1s properly compounded with asuitable protein and the necessary flavorin'g matter, a very goodchewing gum results. g

There are, of course, many different proteins, many of which are notsuitable for my purpose. By the term suitable protein wish to beunderstood as meaning 'a protein that has the following characteristics:

(a)' It is not harm ul when taken into the Y digestive tract and doesnot have an objectionable taste or odor, being insoluble or very slowlysoluble in weak alkali solutions after being incorporated in the gum.

(b) .It may be worked or kneaded into a plastic mass at ordinaryatmospheric temperatures.

S) It may, by suitable mixing, be mechanica y combined with rubber and asuitable resin to form a chewing gum which when flavoring matter isadded is of the proper plasticitywithout being excessively stlcky.

While various proteins are suitable for my pur ose, I prefer to use oneof the alcohol solu le proteins derived from the cereal grains. Theseproteins are commonly included under the generic name of prolamins andinclude gliadin from wheat, zein from maize, and hordein from barley, aswell A as other proteins. The prolamins have the great advantage thatthey may contain considerable l quantities of impurities withoutmaterially impairing thei eiliciency for my pur ose. p

e artificially extracted protein imparts certain highly desirablecharacteristics to the final product and I have found that a smallproportion of this protein materially imi a proves chewing gumcompounded in the usual manner from the natural gums now used for thispurpose.

ca In the practical operation of my invention v stall and connect themwithout usin I extract from a cereal grain, by the use of grain alcohol,the suitable protein. For

example, I may extract gliadin from wheat by mixing flour or line wheatmeal with alcohol, lilterin out the insoluble cake, and evaporatin t ealcohol from the filtrate to leave the g iadin, which is an excellentsubstance for my purpose. I then mix one part of gliadin w1th one partof crepe rubber and six parts of purified low boiling point resin towhich I add the necessary sugar and ilavoring matter.

The preferred method of practicing my invention is shown on the annexeddrawing in which the apparatus is shown diagrammatically and all valves,piping etc. omitted since one skilled in the art could readily purchasethe individual units, piping valves, and other necessary parts on theopen market and inmore than mere mechanical skill, having t isdescription as a guide.

While it may be possible to obtain a resin or gum which 1s suitable inthe raw state for use in producing my gum, I have never found such aresin and prefer to produce such a resin by the following process.

I first procure a resin (preferably a cumarone resin) having a meltingpoint somewhat below 100 C., preferably between 50 C. and

100 C. Commercial resins of these characteristics made from benzolderivatives are available commercially but are not suitable for use in`chewin gum due to'their taste and odor. The resin 1s char ed through acharging opening into the dlgester 1 shown diagrammatically in thedrawing. The digester is provided withua hot oil jacket and is heatedthereby to a temperature well above the melting point of the resin. Thedigester bef` ing a closed vessel ,capable of resisting atmosphericpressure, the vacuum pump 2 is started and the air is exhausted from theinterior of the digester, preferably to absolute pressure of about 30millimeters of mercury.

A stream of hot air is then admitted to the bottom of the digester,being drawn into the. digester through a valve 4. No more air isadmitted than the vacuum pump will exhaust so that the vacuum ismaintained inside .the diglester throughout the operation. The air 1seated in the air heater 3 prior to passing through the resin to thetemperature of the oil jacket. This air bubbles up through the vhotresin in the bottom of the digester and then passes upwardly through thedigester.

To insure an intimate contact between the resin and the air, the resinis pumped into the extreme top of the digester and distributed by asprayer over dlviding means, which' break the hot resin up into fine`films or streams which iiow downwardly through the digester in intimatecontact with the ascending air which is being continuously removed bythe vacuum pum ywhich are v aporizable at maintained in the digester,which constituents .e 12 where I believe to be those which impart adisagreeable taste or odor to the resin. Second, the

hotair tends to oxidize undesirable constituents in the resin, producinggases which are removed by the vacuum pump. And third, it tends tooxidize certain constituents of the resin producing solids .which arereadily Temovable by subsequent treatment later to be described. Y

The vacuum facilitates the vaporization and escape from the resin of anyvapors or gases in the aresin.

The circulation of the hot resin under vacuum is continued until theexhaust from the vacuum pump is substantially pure air.

While some commercial resins after treatment as above described havc'theproper viscosity for my purpose, I find it necessary at times to'reducethe viscosit lof the 'resin by allowing a small amount ofY neutralmineral oil to iow into the resin. I have found that a petroleum oilcommonly termed 600W is an excellent substance for my urpo'se. From 5%to 10% of oil is usually su cient to produce the proper viscosity of theresin. After adding the oil, the -injection of air, maintenance ofvacuum, and circulation of hot resin is continued for a period equal toabout one-half the previous period of treatment. This additionaltrea'tment not only thoroughly mixes the oil with the resin, but alsofurther purilies the mixture.

The hotT resin is then run into a washer 5 in which it is agitated in ahot 1% to 5% caustic soda solution for several hours and isthen washedwith several changes, of hot water and finally neutralized by theaddition of the small amount of acid necessary. rIhe resulting resin isperfectly free from disagreeable 'odor or taste and can be freely usedin chewing gum or other food products.

The protein may be produced by charging a mixer 10 with a finely dividedcereal grain to which is added an equal weight of grain alcohol. Theprolamin in the grain is dissolved by the alcohol, and the mash soproduced in the mixer 10 is passed through a filter 11. The alcoholinsoluble or solid 4portion of the mash is then ltered out, forminafilter cake which is rejected. containing the protein is then passed toa still the alcohol is distilled of, passing as a vapor to a condenser13 from w ich it is passed to the mixer 10 and reused.

resin are then mixed in a mixer 14 and the mixture is passed to a-drier15 where a portion of the water is removed. The base of the properconsistency so produced is then passed v to mixer 16` in which flavoringmatter and ber; a protein;

The alcohol i The'protein, crepe rubber, and purified sugar are added..The chewing is then '1n proper condition to be passed through theconventional forming and wrapping operations to produce the conventionalchewing gum packages of commerce.

While the above described process produces a chewing gum of excellentcharacteristics, it is sometimes desirable for the purpose of impartingspecial characteristics to the gum to add to the base in the mixer 14 orthe mixer 16 certain other substances such, for example, as pepsin, asmall proportion of some of the natural gums, or certain othersubstances now used inA the manufacture of chewing.

gum.

By my process I produce at low cost a chewing gum which is superior inits qualities to the chicle type gums now on the marlret,v in that ithas initially n o objectionable taste or odor and develops neither whenchewed; it may be kept over long periods Without alterations of itscharacteristics; it has the desired plasticity when chewed and thisplasticity is not laltered by continued chewing; t even when chewed forlong periods.

I claim as my invention:

and it does not stick to the teeth 1. A chewing gum base containing:rubl ber; a protein; and a resin.

chewing gum base containing: ruband a cumarone resin.

- chewing gum base containing: rubber; a protein; and a resin which is asolvent for rubber, which is insoluble in alkaline solutions of mildstrength, whi ch is without'disagreeable odor, and which is stable anddoes not produce objectionable decomposition products.

4 A chewing gum base containing: rubber; aprotein; and a resin which isat least moderately plastic at 100 C.

5. A chewing gum base containing: rubber; a protein and a resin which isat least moderately plastic at 100 C., whichis a solvent 'or rubber,which is insoluble in alkaline solutions of mild strength, which iswithout disagreeable odor, and which is stable and does not produceobjectionable decomposition products.

. In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles,California, this 19th day of November, 1930.

GEORGE A. HATHERELL.

